Machines appropriate for the harvesting of stalk-like plants, such as corn, and for attachment to a forage harvester are described in publications DE 195 31 918 A and DE 102 58 013 A, such machines are provided with several mowing and intake arrangements arranged transverse to the forward operating direction in which the machine is moved over a field during the harvesting operation. The mowing and intake arrangements include a lower cutter disk in the form of a circular saw blade and conveying disks arranged above these that are provided with recesses which accept plants. The cutting disks are brought into rotation at higher speeds than the conveying disks. Once they have been separated from the stubble remaining in the ground by means of the cutting disks, the plants are accepted by the conveying disks and transported to the center of the machine by the conveying disks into the transverse conveying disks arranged in the gore regions between the conveying disks on the rear sides of the mowing and intake arrangements and delivered to an intake channel of a forage harvester by slope conveyor drums.
In order to lift the plants out of the conveying disks for further delivery to the following transverse conveying drums or conveying disks, so-called strippers are provided, whose points extend into the intervening space between two conveying disks arranged one above the other. The strippers are connected to the bottom of the machine by vertical posts at a short distance downstream of the point. Such strippers are also called cleaning devices or take-out devices. Further strippers are also associated with the transverse conveying drums and the slope conveying drums. They are connected to the bottom of the machine by posts at the output ends of the transverse conveying drums and the slope conveying drums.
EP 0 069 898 A describes a machine of the type cited initially that includes two mowing and intake arrangements with lower cutting disks and conveying disks arranged above these that contain recesses distributed around their circumferences that accept plants. S-shaped strippers are arranged to the rear of the mowing and intake arrangements, the points of the strippers located upstream extend into the intervening vertical space between two conveying disks. The harvested crop is conveyed along the rear sides of the strippers. Posts extending vertically downward are fastened to the rear sides of the mowing and intake arrangements, the posts, in turn, are fastened with their lower ends to gearbox housings of the mowing and intake arrangements. Here the post is separated from the flow of the crop only by the strippers, so that, here too, plants can be wrapped around the posts.
DE 199 52 566 C describes another machine for the harvesting of stalk-like plants with chains arranged one above the other to which drivers are attached that project outward for the conveying of plants. The chains circulate about deflecting sprockets that rotate about vertical axes. Cutting elements are attached below the chains to cut the plants from the stubble remaining in the ground. Sheet metal components used as strippers are arranged at the outlet end between chains following each other, one above the other, which are connected to the bottom of the machine by posts arranged to the rear of the deflecting sprockets. Here the posts are also located in the flow of the crop, so that plants may become entangled with them.
EP 0 508 189 A proposes another machine for the harvest of stalk-like plants that also includes rotating mowing and intake arrangements with lower cutting disks and upper conveying disks. Each of the mowing and intake arrangements adjoining the longitudinal center plane of the machine is associated with a single stripper that is attached to an upper horizontal cover that is stationary and is fastened to the center of the machine. A stationary cover is required for the attachment of the stripper that can be arranged in the center of the machine only if the outer mowing and intake arrangements are also to convey the harvested crop to the rear of the machine.
Finally, GB 20 12 154 A describes a machine for the harvest of stalk-like plants that also includes rotating mowing and intake arrangements with lower cutting disks and upper conveying disks. Strippers are connected with the bottom of the machine ahead of the axis of rotation of the mowing and intake arrangements and to the side walls of a stalk divider and at the outlet end to the rear side of the mowing and intake arrangements.